A MUM told of the horrifying moment that she saw her little son stranded on the roof of their home.

Four-year-old Tom Embrey-Barlow climbed out of an open window on to the dormer roof of their home in Dale Street, Stubbins, 25ft above the ground.

Firefighters and the boy's mother Karen worked together to bring the boy down during a dramatic rescue that lasted for 20 minutes.

Karen Embrey said: "I usually keep the bedroom window locked. I am quite paranoid about that window but it has been so warm recently we have been opening it.

"You know what it is like with a four-year-old. You only need to turn your back for one minute. I was literally gone for one minute which is all it takes.

"I rushed upstairs. I thought he was hiding but I called out his name and then I realised he had climbed out on to the roof.

"Adrenalin kicked in straight away and I just climbed out on to the roof to get him.

"I grabbed hold of him and we sat and talked for a couple of minutes and he told me 'I am coming down mummy'.

"The firemen came very quickly and they set up ropes and ladders to get us both down.

"When the fire brigade came, one of them was talking to me, making sure we didn't fall and the other got us down off the roof by using the ladder.

"My daughter Holly was quite worried when she realised what was happening, but she was kept quiet by the fireman."

"He has never done anything like this before but I am sure he will look back on this when he is older and laugh about it.

"He was a bit upset but he is alright now."

A spokesman for Lancashire Fire and Rescue said: "His mother was on the roof talking to him. It was dramatic for a while, but we got him down safe and well. We climbed out on to the roof through the same window the little boy went through."

Thomas, who is due to start school in September, was today too upset to talk about his ordeal.